Macalester College-vs.-Monmouth College Scoresheet
NEW LONDON, Conn. — Co-Player of the Game Becca Dabrowski (Sr., McHenry, Ill./West) scored 10 times for Monmouth College, but the duo of co-Player of the Game Annika Krueger (Fr., Emerald Hills, Calif./Sequoia) and Cara Mullery (Jr., Palmetto Bay, Fla./MAST Academy) both racked up four goals to lead five scorers for Division III No. 8-ranked Macalester College in a 13-11 semifinal victory at Connecticut College’s Jane Cadwell Lott ’36 Natatorium on the second day of the 2019 Collegiate water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III Championship.
The 2017 and 2018 CWPA Division III Champion, Macalester (11-5) will have a chance to three-peat as the Scots will return to the pool at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 14, back at Lott Natatorium to square off with the victor of a semifinal game between Division III No. 10 Austin College and Carthage College. Historically, Macalester is 2-0 in CWPA Division III league games with overtime victories against Washington & Jefferson College (2017 at Macalester, 10-9 W OT) and Connecticut College (2018 at Hallman Aquatics Center in Erie, Pa., 13-12 W OT SD) the past two seasons.
CWPA Division III-West Region champion Macalester has faced both Division III-West Region runner-up Austin and CWPA Division III-West Region fourth place finisher Carthage before this season as the Scots topped the Kangaroos of Austin (11-7 W at Wittenberg University on March 2; 8-6 W at Macalester on March 30) and Lady Reds of Carthage (11-2 W at Wittenberg on March 3; 9-4 W at Macalester on March 30).
One of three teams to claim the CWPA Division II crown joining three-time champion Grove City College (2010, 2011, 2012) and fourth time titlist Connecticut (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016), the Scots of Macalester fell behind the Fighting Scots of Monmouth (6-11) by the conclusion of the first quarter.
Macalester jumped on the scoreboard first in the opening frame as Mullery drew first blood with 6:41 left in the first quarter. Following an equalizer from Dabrowski at 5:23 to pull Monmouth even at one-all, the Scots again acquire the lead via a man-up strike by Mullery at the 4:38 mark.
Dabrowski turned the game in Monmouth’s favor with back-to-back blows at 3:40 and 3:00 to place the Fighting Scots out in front at 3-2.
Krueger (2:33) and Lucille Moran (Sr., Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron) (1:57) returned the favor with consecutive scoring haymakers to put Macalester back into the lead at 4-3, but a liner by Skylar Rapp (Fr., Oxnard, Calif./Oxnard) and Dabrowski’s fourth strike of the first quarter at 1:41 and 1:15, respectively, once again flipped the lead in favor of Monmouth at 5-4 through eight minutes of action.
Macalester’s title of CWPA Division III’s best appeared primed to be vacated in the dawning moments of the second quarter as Dabrowski uncorked even-strength (6:49) and penalty shot (6:16) blasts to bury the Scots of Macalester under the weight of a 7-4 deficit.
However, Mullery (3:09) and Moran (35 seconds) ignited a comeback by denting the twine with natural markers to melt Monmouth’s lead down to one at 7-6 entering halftime.
Oriana Galasso (Jr., Gresham, Ore./Central Catholic) and Krueger capped off the rally by curving in back-to-back goals at 7:19 and 5:40, respectively, to return the lead to Macalester at 8-7 less than three minutes into the third quarter.
Dabrowski, however, was not done as she balanced the scoreboard at 4:21 and did it again at nine-all with a five-meter penalty shot (2:01) following another go-ahead heave by Krueger with 3:01 on the clock.
The back-and-forth play continued as Mullery gave the lead back to Macalester with 59 seconds left, but Dabrowski recorded her ninth goal with five ticks left in the third frame to square the squads at 10-all going into the final eight minutes of action.
Krueger put Maclaester back into the lead at 11-10 56 seconds into the fourth quarter prior to Dabrowski flushing her 10th tally at 6:53 to make it an 11-all contest.
Facing the potential of overtime if neither team could find a way to deliver a knockout blow, it was sophomore Adeline Steward-Nolan (So., Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park and River Forest) who played hero as the second-year sandwiched a yellow card to Monmouth head coach Peter Ollis (3:34) with scores at 3:34 and 1:55 for the difference in a 13-11 victory.
Macalester, which downs Monmouth for the fourth time in 2019 following earlier 16-10 (February 24 at Macalester), 13-10 (March 2 at Wittenberg) and 12-11 (March 31 at Macalester) wins, received pairs of goals from Moran and Steward-Nolan to go along marker by Galasso to accompany the combined eight goals by Krueger and Mullery.
In cage, Courtney Overland (Sr., Honolulu, Hawaii/Ioalani) earned the win for the Scots with seven saves, while Nikki Resley (Fr., Temple City, Calif./Monrovia) suffered the loss for the Fighting Scots with five stops.
Dabrowski accounted for nearly all of her team’s scoring with 10 markers to go along with Rapp’s single goal.
The loss drops Monmouth into the Third Place game as the team will take on the loser of the Austin-Carthage semifinal at Noon on Sunday, April 14. The potential placement guarantees a record finish for Monmouth as the Fighting Scots previously earned sixth (2016, 2017), seventh (2014, 2018) and eighth (2015) place finishes at the CWPA Division III Championship since becoming a varsity program in 2014.
| 1st Q | 2nd Q | 3rd Q | 4th Q | – | FINAL | |
| Monmouth College | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | – | 11 |
| Division III No. 8 Macalester College | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 | – | 13 |
| Macalester Goals: | Annika Krueger (4); Cara Mullery (4); Lucille Moran (2); Addie Steward-Nolan (2); Oriana Galasso | |||||
| Monmouth Goals: | Becca Dabrowski (10); Skylar Rapp | |||||
| Saves: | Macalester – Courtney Overland (7) ; Monmouth – Nikki Resley (5) | |||||
| Exclusions: | Macalester – 7 ; Monmouth – 3 | |||||
| Advantage Opportunities: | Macalester -1-for-3 ; Monmouth – 2-for-7 | |||||
| Sprints: | Macalester – 2-for-4 (1st, 2nd) ; Monmouth – 2-for-4 (3rd, 4th) | |||||
| Cards/Misconducts: | Macalester – None ; Monmouth – YC (Head coach Peter Ollis, 2:41 left in 4th Q) | |||||
| Officials: | Val Vasilchikov; Brad Peavey | |||||
Monmouth College’s Skylar Rapp (#12) attempts to elude Macalester College’s Lucille Moran (#6)
Macalester College’s Natalie Hoffman (#11) looks down pool as Monmouth College’s Skylar Rapp (#12) moves in for a steal
Macalester College’s Lucille Moran (#6) defends Momouth College’s Miranda Pasky (#3)
